Xbox One getting Smartglass and Twitch, no more Microsoft Points

Microsoft announced new features at E3

Microsoft revealed some new features for Xbox One during its E3 2013 press conference.

They introduced the next-gen Xbox One SmartGlass, which now has much more control over your console. You can start single player games from a tablet, or view leaderboards and achievements.

Xbox One "Smart Match" will also be able to set up multiplayer matches with other players in the background while you play single player games.

Microsoft showed off the Smart Match feature using a Killer Instinct match as an example, also showing off a new Mad Catz fight stick controller.

The evolution of Xbox

The Xbox One will no longer be constrained by the limits that the Xbox 360 was - your friends list will no longer be limited to 100 friends, and Microsoft Points will be replaced with real money.

Goodbye Points, hello money

In addition, family members will be able to take advantage of your Xbox Live Gold benefits, including online multiplayer gaming.

These are certainly welcome changes, though it bears noting that Microsoft did not discuss the console's controversial used game policies.

Twitching with excitement

Microsoft also revealed an exciting new partnership with games streaming company Twitch.

Twitch will be fully integrated with the Xbox One, allowing players to broadcast their gameplay live directly from the console, even recording voiceover using Kinect 2.0.

The beginning of a beautiful relationship?

The feature will help the Xbox One compete with Sony's PlayStation 4, which was revealed months ago to have its own dedicated Share button on the controller

"Live broadcasting has continued to grow in popularity, but sharing your console experience has never been this easy," Twitch CEO Emmett Shear revealed in a press release shortly after the reveal.

"Xbox Live Gold is enabling the ability to both upload your gameplay directly to Twitch and to stream Twitch content on Xbox One. The impact of this level of console integration will be a true game changer."